New Delhi: With no let up in the Opposition’s protest in Parliament over the Manipur issue, Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla has agreed to take up the no-confidence motion against the BJP-led NDA government next week.
The debate on the no-confidence motion will be held from 8 to 10 August, the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) headed by Birla decided in its meeting Tuesday. Prime Minister Narendra Modi will reply to the motion on 10 August, sources told ThePrint.
Sources added that Opposition leaders walked out of the BAC meeting not long after it started since they wanted the government to discuss the no-confidence motion first instead of its legislative agenda.
The ethnic clashes in Manipur have become a sticking point between the government and opposition parties from day-one of the ongoing monsoon session that began on 20 July.
The Opposition has disrupted proceedings in both houses of Parliament, pressing for a statement on the Manipur violence from the prime minister. In the Rajya Sabha, the Opposition has been demanding a long-duration discussion on the situation in Manipur under Rule 267 and not a short-duration discussion under Rule 176.
The government had said earlier that Union Home Minister Amit Shah will issue a statement on the floor of the House on the Manipur issue, to which the Opposition objected.
Last week, Congress MP Gaurav Gogoi submitted the notice for the no-trust motion, which has been supported by all constituents of the INDIA bloc, besides the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS). The INDIA bloc has a collective strength of 144 MPs in the Lok Sabha.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla had accepted the no-confidence motion moved by the Opposition, saying that he would discuss with floor leaders of all parties and fix an appropriate time for the discussion.
A no-confidence motion has to be supported by at least 50 members of the House for it to be accepted.
The no-confidence motion is largely symbolic as the BJP-led NDA is well-positioned to defeat it owing to its collective strength of 331 MPs in the 543-member Lok Sabha. In addition to constituents of the NDA, the YSRCP and the BJD have also declared their support for the government vis à vis the no-confidence motion.
(Edited by Amrtansh Arora)
Also read: With NDA facing its 2nd ‘no-confidence’ motion in Lok Sabha, a look at what it is & how it works